Kevin Trudeau, a marketer who has appeared in or produced hundreds of infomercials, agreed to transfer $2 million in cash and property to the Federal Trade Commission to settle a false-claims complaint.
In the deal announced yesterday, Trudeau will pay $500,000 in cash and transfer property in Ojai, CA, to the FTC. He agreed to cease any future involvement with infomercial advertising and avoid making disease or benefit claims for any type of product through any medium. The ban on infomercials exempts truthful advertising for books, newsletters and other information publications.
Trudeau marketed Coral Calcium Supreme, a dietary supplement, and Biotape, an adhesive strip for pain relief, the FTC said. In his marketing claims, Trudeau stated that Coral Calcium Supreme imparted as much calcium as two gallons of milk and could cure cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure and lupus while Biotape permanently relieved severe pain, according to the FTC.
In June 2003, the FTC sued Trudeau, alleging that he made false statements about Coral Calcium Supreme and violated the terms of a 1998 FTC order against him. In July 2003, he agreed to cease making the challenged claims.
However, this summer U.S. District Judge Robert W. Gettleman in Chicago found Trudeau in contempt of court for violating that agreement in a direct mail piece and infomercial, the FTC said.
